by Vicky Jones
Shona's face lit up. Chloe dropped her eyes to her desk as she caught herself mirroring Shona's infectious smile.
"Thank you. I'll leave you in peace now." Shona turned and headed to find Cuban to give him the good news.
"Hartley! Get your fat ass in here, boy. When I say I like my coffee strong, I mean it! I ain't drinking this rat's piss." Sheriff Landon spat out a mouthful of watery brown liquid on his paper-strewn desk and returned to chewing on his cigar butt.
"Sorry, sir, lemme sort that for you."
Deputy Hartley walked into his boss's commodious office and grabbed the steaming mug off the desk. His sweat-stained shirt clung to every part of his body as he rushed to refill his boss's mug.
"Um, sir? We have young lady outside asking for you."
"Who?"
"Chloe Bruce. She’s asking for you directly."
"Well, don't just stand there, boy, send the lady through." Landon straightened his tie as his deputy went to fetch their esteemed guest.
"Miss Bruce, how can I be of service to you on this fine day?" the sheriff drooled as Chloe was shown into his office. She was used to people falling over themselves to pay her special attention due to her surname, but this time her status could actually serve to do some good.
"Hello, sheriff. I came for an update on a missing boy. A black boy named Woody?"
"You come here about a colored kid? Does your father know you’re here, ma'am?"
"No, why would he?"
The sheriff waved his hand. "Carry on."
"His mother Maria has been in here before to ask for help, so I just wanted to know how your no doubt thorough investigation into this matter was progressing," Chloe said, her eyes leveled at him.
"I'm sure my boys have followed procedure, but um, to make you happy, Miss Bruce, I'll have them out looking for the boy and even visit Maria to let her know what’s happening. How's that for service?" The sheriff took a puff on his cigar.
"I appreciate it sheriff. Thank you," Chloe replied, smiling as she turned to leave.
Chapter 48
Chloe spotted Shona sitting at her table in the canteen that Wednesday morning break time, halfway through writing a letter. Deep in thought and tapping her pen against her smiling lips, Shona contemplated her next sentence. Chloe approached the table and looked down momentarily over the beautifully clear handwriting, just as Shona saw her and quickly covered it.
"Chloe, hi." She folded the letter and slipped it into her top pocket.
"Sorry, am I disturbing you?"
"No, it's fine. You OK?"
Chloe eagerly sat down next to Shona to tell her the good news. Her excitement didn't go unnoticed by Randy, who was stalking nearby.
"I spoke to the sheriff. He said he’d look into it and send some officers around to talk to Maria."
"Oh, Chloe, that's fantastic. Thank you so much."
"You're welcome," she replied, her heart beating faster seeing Shona so happy.
They were so lost in the moment they didn't hear the footsteps of Cuban and Elbie, who arrived a minute later, trays in hand.
"Hi, Cuban, Elbie. I better go. Let me know if you hear of anything, Shona." Chloe rose and headed back up to her office.
"Good to see you two getting along so well," Elbie remarked, chomping on his sandwich.
"What? Oh…She's trying to help us find Woody."
"Woody?" Elbie asked.
"I'll explain later." Shona gulped her water and smiled at Cuban.
"That's quick work from Miss Chloe. Jesus, what did you say to her to make her act so fast?" Cuban let out a low whistle of admiration.
Shona blushed as she fought to contain her swirling emotions.
Just before the end of the working day, Shona strolled into the tool room to find Elbie hunched over his diary, writing furiously. He jumped when he heard footsteps but shrank back relieved when he saw it was only his friend.
"What are you writin' there, Elbie? Somethin' else happened today?"
"Dynamite, that's what's in here! I tell you. You heading home now?"
"Yeah, soon, I can't wait to get home and finish that bench. Listen, you got anything that’ll put a hole in this thing?" She pulled out the small pink pebble she’d found by the Weaver.
"Sure, this should do it." Elbie handed her a small, thin drill bit.
"Thanks."
"What's it for?" Elbie asked.
"Oh, nothin' special…thanks, Elbie."
She put the bit into Elbie's Craftsman drill press on his bench and bored a perfectly clean hole in the pebble, then threaded some tough, black string through it. She held her creation up to the light, her eyes shining as she twirled it through her fingers.
Meanwhile, a Ford Sedan police car pulled up outside a run-down house on the outskirts of town just as the sun had begun to set.
"This it?"
"Yeah, come on."
Two officers from the sheriff's department knocked on the paint-chipped front door.
"Hello." The door opened a crack behind the screen door.
"Maria?"
"Yes?"
"We’ve had a report from Miss Chloe Bruce that your boy, Woody, is still missing. That correct?"
"That's right."
"Well, the sheriff would like to reassure you that we have men out there looking for your boy and we’ll be in contact as soon as we find anything."
"Bless you. Thank you. I'll thank Miss Chloe too. Thank you, what lovely gentlemen you are." Maria wiped away a happy tear as she bid farewell to the policemen and closed her door.
Back in the car, the two police officers turned to each other and smiled.
"Yeah, I reckon she bought it!"
"I know…as if we're gon' waste valuable police time lookin' for a damn fuckin' nigger boy!"
Chapter 49
Shona couldn't get to work quick enough the following morning. Normally, the two-mile hike was a chore, but this bright and sunny Thursday dawn Shona practically ran the entire distance, the pink pebble necklace safely tucked away in her jacket pocket. Arriving at the main entrance just before 6:30, Shona saw Chloe's Deluxe already parked up outside and headed straight up to her office, knocking lightly on the door.
"Um…Miss Chloe?"
"Good morning, Shona. How are you?"
"I'm good, thank you, ma'am. I just wanted to say thank you. You know, for trying to help Maria."
"Well, they haven't found Woody yet. I called the sheriff again last night but nothing, so I don't know how much good I've been." Chloe sighed, fiddling with her pen.
Shona smiled and took a deep breath. "Listen, I wanted to give you this." She reached into her top pocket. "I made it from the pebble…from the riverbank, remember? Hopefully it’ll remind you of a good day, if things here start to get you down, I mean. Like when you gave me that postcard…”
Shona's heart was thudding as she handed her the delicate necklace.
Chloe was silent for what felt like an age as she twirled it around her fingers. Shona started to panic, feeling she had overstepped the mark.
"It’s OK, you don't have to wear it. You probably got like a ton of diamond necklaces…But…Um, oh, I don't know. I'll leave you to it." She turned to leave, her cheeks burning.
"Shona, it's beautiful!" Chloe gasped. "The way it catches the light, it sparkles like a diamond. It's better than a diamond."
"You like it?" Shona's ocean-blue eyes were shining.
"I LOVE it! I'll put it on now."
Chloe struggled to tie the string behind her neck. After a few moments, Shona edged forward to help but eventually it stayed put, looking stunning as it sat perfectly in the hollow of her neck.
"It looks great on you." Shona took a step back. "You wanna come to the Cell Block tonight? Cuban sometimes gets up to play."
"I’d love to."
Just as Chloe and Shona began planning their evening, the carefree atmosphere of the office was shattered.
"Good morning, ladies, how are we both this f
ine morning?" Kyle swaggered in, not even bothering to knock.
"Kyle." The light in Chloe’s eyes faded.
"Hi, Shona, how are you? Things OK?" He flashed a bright smile.
"Fine. Have a good day, Miss Chloe."
Shona smiled at her and gave a cursory nod to Kyle as she left, wondering what kind of head injury he'd received overnight to make him act so nice to her.
As the door closed, Chloe turned to Kyle.
"That was nice to hear you speak to Shona like that, Kyle." She smiled warmly at him for the first time since they'd met.
"Well, I guess I feel a bit sorry for her. I spoke to the mechanics yesterday and apparently she ain't as good with those trucks as she seems to think she is. They let her have a tinker sometimes when I'm not looking, but they don't seem impressed. I ain't got the heart to tell her so we'll keep her on, but doin' what she's doin for now, OK? She can't damage anything cleaning, can she? Anyway, from what I hear, she won't be here much longer. Once she's got enough money to move on, I heard she's outta here."
Chloe's eyes clouded over again as she listened. But she was grateful to Kyle for deciding to go easy on Shona. She stood by the window looking out onto the yard as Shona bounced her way over to a group of mechanics, who seemed genuinely pleased to see her as they tossed her a wrench.
Strange, she thought, after what Kyle had said. She furrowed her brow as she gently ran her fingers over her precious necklace.
Chapter 50
Loud jazz played in the background and, as their evening wore on, Cuban and Shona were starting to get used to people coming up to their table and thanking Chloe for trying to help Maria. Some just wanted to catch a glimpse of the famous Miss Bruce in the flesh, not quite believing that somebody of her influence wanted to spend her valuable time with them.
"What do you think?" Shona said loudly, leaning in to Chloe.
"About what?" Chloe replied, tapping her foot to the beat.
"This place!"
"I love it! It's just a shame it all has to be a secret."
"Yep, for their own safety. They had to move again!" Shona added.
"I wish that one day people won't have to hide themselves away anymore," Chloe murmured.
"So, Cuban, you gon' play some sounds?" Shona asked, a sudden blast of trumpets swallowing up Chloe’s last statement.
"Yeah, why not? They got some guitars all ready; I'll go check 'em out."
He jumped up out of his seat with more vigor than Shona had ever seen in him. The musicians in the band were only too happy for Cuban to jam along. Chloe breathed out slowly, her expression distant.
"What's up?" Shona asked, hoping it wasn't because she was bored.
"You know something, Shona? I can be myself here. I ain't gotta impress anybody, be in charge of anybody or close any stupid deals." She paused. "I’ve never felt so free! It's like I'm discovering new things around me all the time!"
Chloe gazed around the room. The revellers looked as if they were moving in slow motion, all smiling and enjoying the happy atmosphere. She wiped away a lone tear as it trickled down her lightly powdered cheek.
"Well, you're always welcome here. Look, they adore you." Shona encouraged Chloe to look behind her to see the admiring glances being cast their way.
"Miss Chloe?" Maria made a beeline over to her.
"This is Maria, Woody's mother," Shona told her.
"Oh, hi! Listen, thank you for my flowers, they were gorgeous. I really hope the sheriff finds your son soon," Chloe said, resting both her hands tenderly on Maria's forearms.
Shona sat back and took in the moment. Never did she think that somebody with the Bruce family name could be so compassionate to a black person. After a few minutes of kind words exchanged, Maria left Chloe to get back to her drink–and her conversation with Shona.
"So, Shona-of-few-words. Was there a guy back in Louisiana…or Mississippi?" Chloe began casually.
"Uhhh–" She choked a little on her drink and fiddled with a beer mat. "Not really, no. What about you?" Shona deflected that question once again.
"Uh-uh." Chloe wagged her finger at her. "As your boss, I'm ordering you this time to tell me more."
Shona's head started to spin, her gut twisting as she wiped her forehead.
"That's a long, boring story," she replied finally, fidgeting in her seat.
"The reason you left?"
"Kinda." Shona looked everywhere except at Chloe.
"Well…we got time. There’s no rush."
"But here isn't the place."
"Ooooh. I wanna know what's behind the cool, mysterious Miss Jackson that nobody knows about."
"Trust me. You don't! It's not a pretty story. Anyway, it looks like Cuban’s about to perform." Shona angled her body away from Chloe's frustrated gaze and faced towards the stage.
Cuban strummed his guitar along with two other musicians, the audience nodding along to the thumping beat. Unable to take her eyes off Shona, Chloe bit her lip to hold her back from pressing her more. Just as her curiosity almost got the better of her, she felt a light tap on her elbow.
"Excuse me, ma'am?"
She turned to her left to see a young black boy, no more than fourteen years old. He was breathing fast and sweating, a small, fresh-looking cut sitting above his left eye.
"Yes?" Chloe replied, noticing Shona turn around also.
"I was told to give you this note from somebody outside." The boy handed Chloe a folded-up note. It read:
Get out now, for your own safety.
By the time she looked up, the boy had vanished. She looked over at Shona, who froze when she saw the expression on her face.
"We need to get Cuban!" Chloe breathed, her terrified eyes blazing.
Shona jumped out of her seat and raced over to interrupt Cuban's performance, yanking him unceremoniously off the stage by his guitar strap.
"What the hell–"
"We gotta go, NOW! Some kid…There's no time to explain!" Shona dragged him back to their table and, with her other hand, grabbed Chloe, pulling them both through the dancing crowd and towards the exit. Instantly, the happy atmosphere of the Cell Block was fractured as the frantic screams of the boy messenger sliced through the smoky air.
"Get out, GET OUTTA HERE! RUN!" he yelled.
Chaos broke out as hordes of people stampeded towards the exit, almost crushing Chloe as she tried to pull open the door, her blood running cold when it opened to reveal several shadowy figures standing in a line in front of the building, each shrouded by a bright white cloak. Even though their pointed hoods masked their own identities, there was no doubting who they represented. This wasn't the first time the white cloaks had caught up with the constantly moving venue of the Cell Block.
Each figure held a burning wooden torch and stood chillingly still. After a moment of watching the mayhem unfold, one figure stepped forward ominously, his calmness a stark contrast to the screams and wails from the black men and women weaving in and out of each other like scalded ants. He walked over to one of the building’s boarded-up windows, lay his burning torch down, then prized the wood off with a crowbar. With cold-blooded precision, he picked up the torch and dropped it inside, stepping back as the fire ignited the little pools of alcohol that had been spilled on the dry, wooden floorboards by tipsy dancers. Ferocious orange flames began licking up around all edges and corners, lighting the building up like a Christmas tree within seconds.
Screams and cries echoed in the air. Crowds frantically tried to run away from the Cell Block, only to be taunted by the masked members of the Klan cackling with glee as they obstructed their escape. Shona, Cuban and Chloe sprinted in the opposite direction to safety, the roaring flames completely engulfing the peaceful bar they had minutes earlier been sitting in.
"My God!" Chloe’s eyes were wide with shock as the three of them hid behind a wall fifty yards away.
"Welcome to my world," Cuban gasped, trying to catch his breath.
"Whoever did that clearly didn'
t want you harmed, Chloe. Are they following you now? How did they know you were here?" Shona cried out, pointing back towards the fire that had illuminated the night sky.
"Your father? Do you think the warning note was sent by him?" Cuban raged, the flames reflecting in his smoke-filled, bloodshot eyes.
"I don't know. I didn't tell anyone where I was going tonight!" Chloe looked at both of them in confusion.
"Well, someone's following you!" Shona shouted back, coughing as the thick, black, acrid smoke choked the air around them. She hadn’t meant to sound cruel but her harsh tone caused tears to well up in Chloe's stinging, red raw eyes.
Chapter 51
"You alright?"
Cuban spoke softly as he sat down next to Shona in the canteen that Friday morning on their 10 o'clock break.
"I guess so. You?" She poked at her eggs.
"It’s nothin' I ain't used to. But Miss Chloe ain't safe in my world! I know it's not right what’s happenin’ out there, but people are gettin' hurt this way. We gotta protect her too, remember, her kind ain't gon' be happy if she's associating with coloreds! Can you imagine what that could cause in this town if she was seen doing that? There would be outright war!"
"Or her influence could make it so we can all finally live in peace together," Shona mused.
"That ain't never gon' happen, Shona, not in our lifetime. I haven't known peace anywhere I've ever been, even if we'd had a hundred whites on our side. For now, we just have to keep moving, keep hiding," Cuban said, the despair in his voice tangible.
"I know." Shona got up and trudged back to work without eating a bite.
Outside, Shona clenched her fists as the injustice of the night before turned over and over in her confused mind. She stomped by, staring at the ground and almost crashing into Kevin the delivery guy, his cheery, "Excuse me. Where's the fire, girl?" comments infuriating her even more.